Everything Digital Cameras

With the advancement of the digital camera and the software that is made for them, most pictures look professional from the first click of the camera. But like most things, it is important to understand the “how and why” for higher quality results.

The basics of a digital camera revolve around terms like pixel, pixel count, white balance, sensor, sensitivity, optical zoom, or digital zoom. These improve your understanding of what digital photography is all about, and will help you become a more efficient photographer.

For example, one important term is digital sensor. A typical digital camera may have a digital sensor element that is as big as a small finger nail. Most 5MP digital cameras use a sensor that is 7mm x 5mm in size. This is much smaller than the size of the negative of a 35 mm camera. However, high-end digital cameras have large sensors, and generate superior images. These are important things to know, to see how pictures can be better or worse.

Digital cameras also have sensitivity settings similar to ISO ratings on film. Most digital cameras will have settings for sensitivity equivalent to ISO 100 and ISO 200. Many also have a setting for ISO 400. A few expensive digital SLR cameras with large sensors have settings for ISO 3200 or even for ISO 6400.

Most digital cameras have an optical and a digital zoom. An optical zoom lens works by changing the focal length and magnification while the zoom is being utilized – with the image quality remaining high. Digital zoom works by cropping the image to a smaller size. The cropped image is enlarged to fill the frame, causing a significant loss of quality.

The manufacturers of digital cameras use the term “pixel count” to describe their camera’s image properties. The word pixel originates from “(PIC)ture (EL)ement”- with the use of phonics added for emphasis. It represents a single point in a graphic image – not a dot but an abstract sample that can be reproduced in any size, without a dot or square appearance.

A pixel is important to understand because it is the basic unit of measurement, used to define a digital photograph. The more the number of pixels per square inch, the higher the resolution of a digital picture, increasing its clarity. Some examples would be 2,400 pixels per inch, 640 pixels per line, or spaced 10 pixels apart. Designers, artists, and photographers sometimes interchange the pixel terminology, such as dots per inch (dpi) with pixels per inch (ppi). The dpi is used when it refers to the printer’s resolution for the printing density. Each pixel is made up of three color channels – red, green and blue-and has a numerical value of between 0 and 255.

The pixel count also decides the size of a print in case you want to print photographs. A 3MP camera can provide excellent 4×6 inch prints, while a 4 or 5MP digital camera can deliver high quality 8×10 inch prints. With a digital camera you can pick the white balance to suit the light source. This is meant to ensure that white looks white, and not yellow or blue. Normally, your digital camera will do this automatically. You can also set the white balance yourself for better effects.

Since each pixel generates three bytes of data, a photographer using a 3MP camera will need a storage space of 9 million bytes or 9MB to store a single image. This is a huge amount of space. Camera companies therefore allow for a compression of image using a format called JPEG. This reduces the file size significantly but while doing so a lot of data is lost. To overcome this problem companies have come up with different storage formats. Canon calls it RAW while Nikon calls it NEF. The data loss is less in these formats.

The low end cameras used by beginners can shoot images whose pixel count is one million is categorized as 1 MP or one million pixel camera because the intensity of each pixel is variable, with each pixel having three or four dimensions of variability – such as red, green and blue, cyan, magenta, yellow, and black. The high-end cameras used by professionals, can range from 14MP to 22MP with a pixel count as high as 14 million or 22 million per image.

The thing to remember is the higher the resolution, the more realistic the image is, matching closest what the actual image is. So take your time, do some research, and talk to people who know cameras. Otherwise, a lot of money will be spent on something that is barely adequate for what you want.

By: Mike Singh

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powerful, small is a revolution- this is the idea of the technology followed by the compact digital cameras. As the world is getting more and more fast, people want their gadgets to be handy. And, digital cameras are no exception to this. This is the major factor behind the birth of a compact edition of digital cameras.

The digital technology is the most revolutionary discovery in the field of photography. It has attracted the world by producing high quality images in limited cost. The compact digital cameras are comparatively smaller in size and have added many special features to their name. They are, no doubt, one step ahead the digital SLR cameras or any other camera models.

The standard proportions of compact digital cameras can roughly be 3.5 W x 2.5 H x 1.0 D. These dimensions can vary a little here and there, depending upon the type, the model and the brand of your compact digital camera. One interesting thing that you must know about the compact digital cameras is that an ideal compact digital camera has to have the certified label of Jeanspocket. A compact camera with this trademark is so compact that you can keep it in the pocket of your jeans, comfortably. It is a newer striking criterion added to the compact digital cams by fast generation of today.

The whole idea behind the compact digital cameras is that they make the photography fast and simple, without causing any discomfort due to their large size.

There are many plus points in the compact digital cameras, apart from their small size. Most of the models of digital cams have added features to their cap such as multiple scenes, optical zooms, exposure modes and other handy functions. Some compact digital cameras, having 11 mm or less diagonal sensors make fairly low noise at ISO 100. But, at ISO 400 and above, the noise of the camera can be quite bothering. Some compact digital cameras are so small to look at, that they demand a close look from those who wish to buy them.

The range of $200 to $500 includes the most popular selections of the compact and ultra-compact digital cameras. All the brands of compact digital cams offer a vast array of exciting functions and features. The sensor resolutions vary from 3.0 to 8.0 mega pixels and even more. The ultra-compact models can have the size so small like a credit card. They are just less than an inch thick and are equipped with advanced features and high-resolution sensors. the advanced controls include common features like, multiple AF zones, manual settings and sophisticated scene modes.

There are some shortcomings of compact digital cameras also. As the sensitivity of a digital camera can be calculated through ISO, the ISO range of a compact digital camera varies between ISO 50 and 400. While, on the other hand, the ISO range of a digital SLR camera can range from ISO 100 to1600. This makes the compact digital cameras less sensitive than digital SLR cameras.

There is much advancement in compact digital cameras, as compare to the digital SLR camera. While, in some cases digital SLR camera appears to be having more features than a compact digital camera as well. Your job is to conjure up the best one as per your needs after measuring all the pros and cons.

By: Dan Feildman

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